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The world’s demand for electricity—and the
stored electrical energy in batteries—is escalating. Growth in
wireless communications, the Internet, critical electronic
operations that cannot be interrupted and the transportation needs
of a world on the move are creating enormous new demands for battery
power.
Exide Technologies is the global leader in providing stored
electrical-energy—or battery—power. As the world’s foremost supplier
of lead-acid batteries for transportation, network power and motive
power applications, with an increasing presence in emerging battery
technologies, Exide Technologies offers the most comprehensive
portfolio of superior technologies, products and people.
With operations in 89 countries, Exide Technologies has captured one
of the leading positions in every market it serves—including the
original equipment market and the aftermarket.
Network Power : Meeting the
World’s Growing Demand for Stored Electrical Energy
Industrial batteries fall into two categories,
those that supply motive power for vehicles such as fork lift
trucks, and those that stand by to provide emergency or backup power
to critical, uninterruptible operations when the AC or DC power is
out. The network power groups of Exide’s Industrial Energy Global
Business Unit (GBU) specialize in the second group— standby power
batteries, which play a critical role in 21st century life.
Anyone familiar with the energy crisis a few years ago in California
can understand the need for stored reserves of electricity during
blackouts and brownouts. All around the world, whenever there’s an
outage, Exide Technologies network power batteries keep critical
systems that cannot be interrupted—such as data networks, railroad
crossing signals, industrial controls and computer systems—up and
running smoothly and safely. When the utility power is interrupted,
Exide batteries instantly take over the load, providing electricity
until utility power is restored or until generators powered by
diesel, solar, wind—or in the future, fuel cells—can take over the
load. When the power is on, they help electric utilities shift power
from grid to grid. And during spot outages, they help public
utilities shift electric power around substations.
Network power batteries play another critical role in 21st century
life. Not only do they back up traditional, wire-line voice
networks, but they also support high-speed data transmission,
wireless communications systems and cable TV.
Today, the explosive growth of the Internet and the demand for
increasing bandwidth are creating unprecedented demand for electric
power. As the new century progresses, escalating demand for
additional high-speed communications and for data protection also
will increase the need for electricity. “But today’s already
strained capacity for utility power generation is not being
increased,” said Neil Bright, president of the Exide Technologies
Industrial Energy GBU. “This means that all of the applications for
uninterruptible power will be increasingly dependent on the stored
electrical energy in network power batteries.”
Network Power Batteries: Undersea, on Land and in Air and Space
Just as lead-acid batteries are indispensable in contemporary
civilian life, they’re indispensable to the military. Through its
Industrial Energy and Transportation GBUs, Exide Technologies is
the premier supplier of batteries to military forces around the
world.
Exide’s batteries back up the power plants on nuclear submarines and
power the majority of diesel electric submarines in the free world.
The company is the sole supplier to the United States Navy for
submarine batteries, the U.S. Army for ground vehicle batteries, and
NATO countries for tank and ground vehicle batteries. It also
supplies the U.S. Navy with batteries for use on surface ships. In
the U.S. alone, Exide Technologies batteries are found in wheeled
and tracked military vehicles at 218 military bases across the
country.
The network power teams of Exide Technologies Industrial Energy GBU
supply batteries that are used under water, on land and in air and
space. It supplied batteries for the U.S. Navy’s first submarine,
and today is supplying batteries for the most advanced vessels,
including the nuclear-powered USS Seawolf and the newest Seawolf-Class
submarine, the USS Jimmy Carter. Exide batteries powered the first
automatic railway switching/signaling system, the first
transatlantic wireless telegraph transmission and the Apollo space
missions.
The Technology Behind the World’s Leading Standby Batteries
The Industrial Energy GBU, with headquarters in Manchester, England,
provides a complete portfolio of standby batteries, equipment and
services, including monitors, chargers, ancillary products and
systems, and on- and off-site battery specification and
installation.
In the telecommunications markets, Exide Technologies provides its
customers with stored electrical energy solutions based on advanced
technology, valve-regulated lead acid [VRLA] batteries. Exide, with
its VRLA Absolyte®, Marathon, Sprinter and Sonnenschein brands, is
the world leader in large installations of these batteries that can
be found in telephone companies’ central switching stations and as
part of the infrastructure in most major office buildings worldwide.
Exide’s Industrial Energy GBU serves a broad customer base for
network applications that includes Deutsche Telekom, Emerson,
Ericsson, MGE, Motorola, Nokia, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone and
Siemens.
Exide Technologies Today and Tomorrow
The lead-acid battery is evolving high technology at its best.
Developed in 1859, its first use was to power electric lights in
railroad cars while they stopped in stations. Exide Technologies
researchers and engineers have advanced the technology to make a
battery that is smaller, more powerful, safer, longer-lived, and
less expensive than before.
To keep the company at the forefront of the most significant
developments in the industry, Exide recently established its own
global network of battery testing and design improvement centers in
France, Germany, Great Britain, North America, Portugal and Spain.
The company’s engineers continually work to explore new and better
ways to advance lead-acid battery technology. And its sales
representatives explore new and better ways to provide service as a
core part of the company’s business strategy.
“In the past, our industry thought of itself as providing little
more than batteries and chargers,” said GBU President Bright. “We
recognize that superior service after the sale is one of the keys to
customer satisfaction.” With its combination of superior technology
and service, Exide Technologies is providing total stored electrical
energy solutions.”
The Global Advantage
Exide Technologies’ global footprint is
enhanced by the technological developments of all its divisions. The
company’s Industrial Energy Global Business Unit, headquartered in
Manchester, England, supplies batteries for both network power and
motive power applications. The Industrial Energy GBU supports a
broad customer base that includes Wal-Mart, Tesco, Ford, Hyster,
Toyota, Hako and Jungheinrich. The Exide Transportation GBU,
headquartered in suburban Atlanta, Ga., provides starting and
deep-cycle batteries for vehicles ranging from garden tractors to
cars, pickup trucks, motorcycles, boats, jet skis, golf cars, farm
equipment, RVs, motor homes, buses, locomotives, tractor trailers
and military equipment such as tanks and personnel carriers. Exide
also is developing VRLA and flooded high voltage battery systems for
transportation and industrial applications. Consider the company’s
global footprint in the e-commerce business sector alone:
Through its Industrial Energy GBU, Exide makes the network power
batteries that backup the servers, Internet service providers, high
speed communications links and personal and network computers that
allow e-commerce to be conducted.
Also through its Industrial Energy GBU, Exide makes the motive
power batteries that power the forklifts and other electric trucks
that move the goods purchased via e-commerce through warehouses and
distribution centers.
And through its Transportation GBU, Exide makes the batteries that
start the cars of the people who work in telecommunications and
retail, and the trucks that deliver the goods to consumers all over
the world, and the cars of consumers who buy at traditional retail
outlets.
“One of our strengths is that our products and services span markets
and geographic borders. This allows us to provide value to our
customers where they need it, when they need it, anywhere in the
world,” said Bright.
Contact:
Jeannine
Addams
Kristin Wohlleben
J. Addams & Partners, Inc.
404/231-1132
communications@exide.com
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